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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Amber O'Connor

'I want to name my child after a Lord of the Rings character - but some say it's cruel'

A fantasy fan has left parents divided after revealing she wants to name her child after a Lord of the Rings character.

The self-proclaimed 'nerd' loves J. R. R. Tolkien, and she's keen to take inspiration from his series when she welcomes a little one.

But she fears it would be 'cruel' to go ahead with her chosen moniker, for while it is her favourite choice she doesn't know if others would agree.

"Kids are still a few years down the road, but my partner and I like to discuss names for fun and I love the name Eowyn, but I'm pretty sure it's not actually okay to name a kid," she wrote in a post to Reddit.

The couple love the name Éowyn (Pierre Vinet/New Line/Saul Zaentz/Wing Nut/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock)

The fan added: "I'm a nerd and all my friends are nerds, so I think it's instantly recognizable, but I don't have any normal people around to ask."

As such, the book lover was keen to hear social media users' thoughts. "I'm kinda hoping I'll be told I'm wrong and it's perfectly acceptable, but I think that's unlikely," she said.

In comments, where the woman explained she initially left out her inspiration to see who recognised it, the fan added: "The Tolkien link is part of why I love it. Éowyn has been one of my favourite characters since I was a kid."

Fortunately, people were quick to reassure her she could choose the name if she wished, even if some had their misgivings.

"I was at school with an Eowyn! We're 30(ish) now. I didn't even know it was a LOTR thing at the time. It has such a pretty sound. I’d use it!" read one reply.

Another said: "Not cruel. It's certainly 'out there', and forever linked to Tolkien, but I've seen worse." They added: "All in all if you really love it, it's usable but I personally think it belongs in the middle name slot rather than used as a first name."

Meanwhile, someone else agreed: "Not outright cruel, but MAYBE consider making Eowyn a middle name or something…".

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